Eyes on Animals dropped by a small slaughterhouse in Brabant that is known to take culled-dairy cows. In the waiting pens we observed a number of cows in questionable shape, particularly one that was crippled with swollen joints on both her hind legs and one of her front legs. The slaughterhouse owner explained that they came from only 20-30km away, and that it is better they be slaughtered than left in such a state at the farm. He says there is still too much of a gray zone as to when an animal is unfit for transport. He also expressed his frustratin that such animals must wait until the end of the day to be slaughtered, to avoid contaminating the slaughter line. "Such animals should be slaughtered right away", but the government doesn't allow it. Eyes on Animals shares this concern- injured animals that are still thought to be fit for human consumption are always made to wait until the veterinarian arrives, and until the slaughter line is done for the day before they are put out of the misery. Why can there not be a 2nd slaughter area for those animals still considered fit enough for transport but better off being put out of their suffering quickly? Eyes on Animals will look into this, as we have seen other slaughterhouses with a second slaughter area for those animals that could contaminate the main slaughter line.
Eyes on Animals -
14.07.2009 Inspection of culled-dairy cattle awaiting slaughter at a small Dutch slaughterhouse
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Slaughterhouses
The lives of "farmed" animals, from fattening pig to breeding sow, and from veal-calf to dairy cow, end at the slaughterhouse. According to European law, animals must not endure unnecessary suffering when slaughtered. Sadly this is not always the case. Crippled animals are sometimes dragged or kicked towards the kill floor. Many are left to shiver in the winter on cold concrete floors for hours before being killed. At some plants the workers are not skilled or the equipment is faulty, leading to animals being improperly stunned and cut. Desensitized workers can be found hitting the animals and repeatedly using electric prods on sensitive areas. Slaughterhouses specializing in ritual slaughter (Halal and Kosher), do not stun the animals first and this causes additional pain. Eyes on Animals regularly visits slaughterhouses, unannounced and announced, to check on the condition of the animals arriving at the plant, how they are handled by staff workers, the quality of the installations and housing environment for the animals prior to slaughter, and the effectiveness of the stunning prior to slaughter. Eyes on Animals is in dialogue with the slaughterhouse about their observations and together with them tries to reach improvements to decrease animal suffering.
